The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Holdings Boosted by AIA Group Ltd

AIA Group Ltd lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 190.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,184 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 14,557 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $1,783,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $277,618,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $215,742,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 26.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,142,167 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $364,631,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,420 shares in the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 324.6% during the first quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 938,693 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $65,418,000 after buying an additional 717,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 722.9% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 757,100 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $54,367,000 after buying an additional 665,100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HIG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen upped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group to $144.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $106.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $91.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $94.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $105.56.

Insider Activity

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total transaction of $2,670,695.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,906 shares in the company, valued at $1,869,803.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 956 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.00, for a total transaction of $82,216.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 170,180 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,635,480. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total transaction of $2,670,695.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 18,906 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,869,803.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 202,264 shares of company stock worth $18,438,369 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock traded up $2.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $98.95. 1,484,801 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,803,371. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.05 and a 52-week high of $103.64. The company has a fifty day moving average of $97.64 and a 200-day moving average of $85.06.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The insurance provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.62. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 19.82%. The firm had revenue of $6.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.53%.

About The Hartford Financial Services Group

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and financial services to individual and business customers in the United States, the United Kingdom, and internationally. Its Commercial Lines segment offers insurance coverages, including workers' compensation, property, automobile, general and professional liability, package business, umbrella, fidelity and surety, marine, livestock, accident, health, and reinsurance through regional offices, branches, sales and policyholder service centers, independent retail agents and brokers, wholesale agents, and reinsurance brokers.